McCarty, Catherine

Recent work at the site of Tamsagbulag, Mongolia, suggests it predates both agriculture and herding in the broader region by more than 2000 years. These excavations showed a more intensive use than expected, consistent with a hypothesis of year-round sedentism alongside a primary reliance on large game. This is noteworthy because, while sedentary hunter-gatherers are known, they are often heavily reliant on plant foods and/or small prey such as fish. Based on the evidence, this thesis concludes that the dwellings are most likely seasonally used rather than year-round settlements. Studying patterns in artifact distribution can inform our understanding of relative length of occupation through a study of accretion and depletion as they relate to habitation, abandonment, and post-abandonment processes. This research utilizes spatial analyses to visualize level-specific patterns in artifact distributions within each excavated dwelling and identify specific clusters of artifacts that may hold insight into potential waste management practices.

Author Keywords: House floor assemblages, Neolithic, Seasonality, Sedentism, Site formation processes, Spatial analysis